1. Technical Field
This invention generally relates to the field of gaming and more specifically relates to a method of playing cards.
2. Background Art
Five card and seven card poker are games that almost everyone knows how to play. As a leisure time activity, poker and other card games have fascinated the public for many years. A vast majority of the many developed poker variations use the same basic priority or ranking of winning poker hands (i.e., Royal Flush, Straight Flush, Four of a Kind, Full House, Flush, Straight, Three of a Kind, Two Pair, One Pair, and High Card(s) in a Hand). For various reasons, it has been difficult to adapt the game of poker into a casino table game in which each player wagers against the house.
In an informal "family type" poker game, each player is dealt a poker hand by the "dealer" who is usually one of the players at the table. Frequently, each player/dealer has the option to choose what type of game (i.e.--five card stud, five card draw, seven card stud, hi-low, Texas Hold 'Em) is played during the deal. This feature is called "dealer's choice." The player with the highest hand, based on the established priority of poker hands, wins that hand. After a player deals, the deal moves around the table in a clockwise fashion, ensuring that each player gets a turn as dealer. It is also common to introduce wagering into the game through the use of tokens or poker chips that usually, but not necessarily, have a monetary value.
Many locations, both within and without the United States, have legalized various forms of gambling. Poker is one of the most popular games of chance and is presently offered in most gaming establishments, such as casinos, that also offer craps, roulette, blackjack, slots, etc. and also in cardrooms which provide for card playing only. Indian casinos and riverboats generally also offer poker, and these venues may or may not offer craps, roulette, slots, etc.
In a conventional cardroom poker game played at a commercial gaming facility, the casino or "house" provides a dealer, the playing cards, the table, the chairs, and, most likely, the gaming chips. Although the house provides the dealer, the dealer is not dealt any cards, nor does the dealer place any wagers. Instead, the dealer shuffles and deals the cards, monitors the betting activity of the players, and controls the overall flow and pace of the game. As compensation, the house typically collects a nominal percentage of each player's bet (the "rake"), or a percentage of the total pot (usually capped). Alternatively, the house may charge each player a set fee per hand or a fee for playing a specified length of time. Given these conditions, house profit is limited to a specific amount per hand played.
While very popular, many people do not like to play cardroom poker because each player is competing against his fellow players. Many people would rather attempt to win money from an impersonal source, i.e., the house or the casino, rather than from their fellow players with whom they may be acquainted. In addition, the actual game play and betting strategy associated with poker can be very confusing and intimidating for many individuals. Additionally, during peak times, potential poker players may have to wait a long time before actually getting a seat as either all the tables may be full, and/or no new tables will be started until there are at least seven to ten new players. These factors prevent many people from participating in conventional cardroom poker games and tend to limit the involvement of many casino patrons who might otherwise be inclined to play poker.
Further, traditional cardroom or casino poker games limit the payout for the winning hand to the amount of money wagered (minus the rake taken by the house) by all of the players. In some cases, a player may have a very strong hand but not win a very big pot because all of the other players "fold" or quit. In addition, there is no opportunity to receive a bonus payment for a particularly good hand. For example, while a Royal Flush is a rare occurrence and generates a thrill for any poker player when they are dealt this hand, the player collects the same total wager that they would have collected if all they needed to beat the other players was a hand containing Two Pairs.
One popular conventional form of live table poker is known as "Texas Hold 'Em" or "Hold 'Em." In this variation, each player at the table is dealt two cards, face-down. These cards are known as the "hole" cards. After a round of betting, the dealer deals three face-up cards, known as the "flop." Another round of betting follows, after which the dealer deals a fourth face-up card, called the "turn" or "fourth street" card. After a third round of betting, the dealer deals a fifth and final face-up card, called the "river" or "fifth street" card. Then, a fourth (final) round of betting occurs. Whenever the dealer deals one or more cards, the dealer may "burn" one or more cards prior to the deal. The burn card or cards are placed in a special spot on the table. Burn cards play no part in the game and are merely a ritual devised to inhibit cheating. Players may fold at any time during the four rounds of betting.
After all cards are dealt and turned face-up, each player uses his or her hole cards in conjunction with any three, four, or all of the five common cards to fashion the best poker hand possible. The winning player is determined by the highest ranking poker hand, once again using standard poker rank as the criterion for comparison. The pot is then awarded to the winning player, or split among two or more winning players possessing hands of equal poker rank. In another variation, the game is played "high-low split," with the total pot being evenly divided between the player having the highest poker hand and the player having the lowest poker hand.
In traditional variations of Hold 'Em, the players compete against each other rather than against the house, and each player must either participate with the two cards dealt to them or fold their cards and wait for the next hand. If s often tedious and boring when playing Hold 'Em to continually get two low, unsuited cards and fold hand after hand for long periods. Also, there is no possibility in such known Hold 'Em poker variants for more than one player to select or possess the identical hand. Later variations of Hold 'Em try to minimize these deficiencies by allowing each player to select a single hand from one of a multiplicity of hands existing on the table. The selections are made before the final communal or non-communal cards are dealt and a winner can be tallied. However, if one or more of the hands are not chosen, they are "folded" and removed from play. Still, even with these improvements, traditional Hold 'Em poker games suffer from not having enough variation in betting choices.